The
Obama administration has warned the US will need to deal with a wave
of “climate refugees” as the Arctic continues to warm, joining
with the Canadian government to express alarm over how climate change
is affecting indigenous communities.

Sally
Jewell, US secretary of the interior, painted a stark picture of
communities relocating and lives disrupted in her first official
visit to Canada. The Arctic, which is warming at twice the rate of
the global average, has just recorded its lowest recorded peak ice
extent after what’s been called a “warm, crazy winter”.

“We
will have climate refugees,” Jewell said. “We have to figure out
how to deal with potentially relocating villages. There’s real
tangible support we need to do from a government basis, working
alongside indigenous communities as they make very difficult choices
about what is right for them.

“We
can’t turn this around. We can stem the increase in temperature, we
can stem some of the effect, perhaps, if we act on climate. But the
changes are under way and they are very rapid.”

The
escalating Arctic temperatures, diminishing ice and rising sea levels
are having consequences for humans as well as other animals such as
polar bears and walruses. The ability to catch fish and travel – or
even to hold the famed Iditarod dog sled race in Alaska – is at
risk.

Jewell
said the remote town of Kivalina in Alaska is “washing away”. The
coastal town, located around 80 miles above the Arctic circle, has
been visited by Barack Obama following warnings its 400-strong
population will have to be moved due to thinning ice that exposes the
town to crashing waves.

It’s
a problem that is expected to be replicated elsewhere in Alaska and
in Canada. Jewell said political leaders need to “act and support”
efforts to make communities more resilient to climate change. US
Republicans have, so far, opposed any funding to protect or relocate
Alaskan towns.

“The
changing climate isn’t just about melting permafrost, it’s having
a huge impact upon cultures,” said Catherine McKenna, Canada’s
environment minister, who met with Jewell in Quebec. “When your ice
highway has gone, communities can’t interact. It’s having a huge
impact upon food and food insecurity.”

McKenna
said there is a “huge commitment to do more” from Obama and
Justin Trudeau, Canada’s prime minister. The two leaders met in
Washington DC in March to agree to help lead the world to a
low-carbon economy and to bolster efforts to protect the Arctic and
the people who live there.

Scientists
expect the Arctic to be completely ice-free for at least a few days
during the summer by the 2040s. The area of summer ice has shrunk by
around 3m sq km since 1980.

The
disappearance of this ice is set to open up new opportunities for
shipping lanes through previously inaccessible areas, raising
concerns over oil spills and further disruption to indigenous
livelihoods.